Godzilla: King of the Monsters Review (VIDEO SCRIPT)

Summary

It’s five years after Godzilla’s bout with the Mutos in San Francisco, and Monarch issa in big doodoo this time.

Not only does the government want them to kill any and all Kaiju -- known as Titans in this universe

But thanks to the actions of a terrorist organization, Godzilla’s old rival Gidorah himself has been awakened, along with a slew of other Kaiju.

So just like he did five years prior, it’s up to Godzilla to restore balance by challenging Gidorah and stopping his reign of terror

Story

The only thing familiar I could find about the overall story were that certain elements of it reminded me of the good plot beats of “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen”

With that being said, the story wasn’t necessarily the strongest one in the world, but it got the job done as far as giving a valid reason why everything that happens in this movie happens

Like, considering what we’ve learned about Monarch both from Godzilla 2014 and Kong: Skull Island, the story that’s presented to us in KotM is the natural next step

This is just the first time in a long time for me that I’ve been exposed to a story-slash-plot in a movie that doesn’t stand on its own two feet, but instead relies on the characters to make it unique; both human and kaiju

Characters

Dr. Serizawa: One of the main complaints I had about Godzilla 2014 was how it misused two of the best actors in its cast: Bryan Cranston and Ken Watanabe.

Well, they couldn’t use Bryan Cranston anymore, but they sure as hell redeemed themselves with their use of Serizawa-Sensei.

His role was bigger and broader, he felt more of a main character than he did in Godzilla 2014, and his actions and decisions left a huge yet positive impact on the narrative overall

Madison: Millie Bobby Brown gave an excellent performance and was definitely one of the actors along with Watanabe that helped make the overall story feel as grand as it aimed to be.

I could see and feel the conflict every time she was on screen and had to make a moral decision, and I could sense her level of conviction; both in her own beliefs and in calling others out.

Emma: Vera Farmiga’s Emma definitely gave off HEAVY vibes of Annette Birkin from RE2 to me, both in personality and in motivation to a certain extent.

That being said, I did appreciate just about everything regarding her arc, including how it finished considering her overall role in the story.

And out of the two parents to Millie’s Madison, she was definitely the more enjoyable of the two to watch, which I’ll get to in a minute.

Monsters

Godzilla: Just as awesome watching him as it was in 2014.

As a fan of how they handled the suspense of his bouts in the first movie, I was afraid that seeing him get more fight screen time would take away from the wonder, but I’m glad to know that I was wrong in that regard.

Mothra: She was, is, and always will be that bitch.

The way they handled her in this movie was pretty on par with how she’s handled in the Toho movies (a bit TOO on par in one hand) and I love the way she looked

Ghidorah: Holy shit was Ghidorah intimidating. I loved how each of his heads had their own distinct personalities

Rodan: Honestly, Rodan’s always been a jobber, real talk. Good to see he stayed true to form here

Likes

There was a really nicely placed easter egg that was a nod to the original 1954 Godzilla in the form of a plot device that I thought was very nicely handled

I loved the cinematography in this movie, holy shit.

One of the main things I loved about Godzilla 2014 was how Gareth Edwards showed the scale of the monsters and used beautifully eerie imagery to show the gravity of the situation like the HALO jump scene.

Almost every scene involving the monsters captured that same imagery, and I loved every minute of it

And while I would’ve liked to have heard more of the eerie choir in the background in some tracks like in Godzilla 2014, hearing the way they utilized Godzilla and Mothra’s Toho theme into the soundtrack was perfect and did a good job at setting the films overall tone

Dislikes

The use of Charles Dance as Jonah (or as he will forever be known to me as: My Dear Brother Numsy, because fuck Game of Thrones).

Considering that the narrative of the monsterverse is hinting that he’s gonna be the main human villain, they sure didn’t give him a lot to do.

And I’m not just talking about his actions, either; he’s barely fleshed out in this movie. They only briefly touched on his motivations, but not enough for us to get engaged with him. And considering how huge in scale this movie is, I felt that his misuse was a tad bit disappointing.

Kyle Chandler as Mark Russell -- aka the main human protagonist -- was so fucking boring.

His development is rushed very early on in the form of a backstory summary

And how he’s portrayed makes it hard for us to care about his gripe with the kaiju in the first place

The only thing that saved him from being a complete snooze fest is one pivotal scene he shares with Watanabe.

Like, seriously; when it comes to human protagonists in the two GOOD American Godzilla movies, Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s Ford Brody in Godzilla 2014 can easily run laps around this guy (I kinda did that on purpose).

Which is sad. Because considering Kyle’s character is in a universe where King Kong exists, you’d think he’d learn how to be interesting in a monster movie after being in a Peter Jackson movie starring King Kong

Overall

Godzilla: King of the Monsters may not be perfect, but it’s one hell of a time.

What the story lacks in strength, it makes up for in human characterization, monster fights, beautifully eerie cinematography and artistry

If you enjoyed just Godzilla 2014, only the Toho films, or both, you’ll for sure get a kick out of this movie.

And while I’d understand if you decide to catch it at a matinee, I definitely say it’s worth a full admittance ticket price and a Blu-Ray purchase from me FOR SURE